
CAPTIVATING: The beautiful Lydia Baylis entranced crowds during her performance in The Lobby last Thursday (Oct 17). Photo (c) lydiabaylis.com
Angelic and captivating, Wales-born Lydia Baylis entertained The Lobby at De Montfort Students’ Union on Thursday afternoon, as the Coffee House Sessions came to the campus once more.
The singer-songwriter treated the ears of the packed-out Lobby to a short set packed full of both moving lyrics and passionate performances in all of the five of the songs that she performed.
London-based Lydia began the acoustic set with an emotive track and, clearly enjoying the performance, proudly beamed a smile throughout as she laid down her stunning vocals that were accompanied by the guitarist who tours alongside her.
Her cover of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Dreams’ again evoked serious passion in Lydia’s performance, with a beautiful unplugged version of the song by a band that she named as one of her inspirations, having frequently listened to them whilst growing up.
And it isn’t just musical talent the stunning singer possesses; the former Oxford student has a degree in history, with particular interest in Leicester’s very own Richard III whom she cited as a hero and inspiration of hers.
In terms of songwriting, however, her inspiration lies in her life experiences. Having travelled to various different countries and cities, including places like Germany and New York, she draws her lyrical muse from what she has learnt and undertaken on her travels, commenting that “your life experiences feed into your song-writing.”
The Coffee House Sessions has been a perfect platform to showcase these songs, on what is her first proper tour of any sort. But Lydia is in no way shy of the stage; with an endearing nature she delighted those in attendance with more of her songs, first a slow and chilled out number infused with high notes that really showcased her impressive and flawless vocal range.
This was followed by what Lydia herself labeled as a “happier song,” with the exact word in its title – Happy Man’ – to emphasise this. It was a wonderful number with a strong and uplifting beat, contrasting greatly with what she describes as the “slightly darker” themes in her other songs.
Check out the Demon TV highlights from Lydia’s set below!
After some fun attempting to fly a paper airplane – as per the rules of De Montfort’s Coffee House Sessions – Lydia composed herself to complete her set, finishing with her next single which is to be released on November 11. ‘Life Without You’ combines both gentle and powerful, with the most poignant moment of the song when the guitar became almost a whisper, allowing Lydia’s fantastic vocals to be heard almost on their own.
Lydia already has the ability to capture a room at this the beginning of her career, and with debut album A Darker Trace set to be out in early 2014, success must surely be predicted for the future of this bright and charming young singer.
If you have a couple more minutes to spare, why not check out the past week’s other content?
- The Monday Playlist: Songs of the Week 07/10/13 – 13/10/13
- Live Review: Passenger @ Birmingham O2 Academy, 10/10/2013
- The Monday Playlist: Music in Motion – The Best Music Videos EVER!